Bank Alfalah’s 25th Annual General Meeting (AGM) was held in Karachi on Tuesday, where the Bank’s shareholders approved the financial results for the year ended 31 December 2016, with the Bank registering Profit after tax of Rs. 7.900 Billion in December 2016 as against Rs. 7.523 Billion in December 2015. Earnings per Share were reported at Rs. 4.96, improving by 4.8 percent from Rs. 4.73 reported in December 2015. The AGM was chaired by Abdulla Khalil Al Mutawa, Director of the Bank and attended by other Board members including Khalid Mana Saeed Al Otaiba, Efstratios Georgios Arapoglou, Khalid Qurashi, Kamran Y. Mirza and Atif Bajwa.

During the briefing on the key aspects of the financial performance, the Shareholders were informed that the year 2016 remained challenging for the industry in general, due to the continued low interest rate regime and narrowing spreads. Despite the challenges, the Bank’s Profit after Tax reflected an increase of 5 percent from last year. With pressure on core revenues, cost of fund was actively managed, so as to minimize impact of falling spreads on the net interest income.

The shareholders were informed that the Bank’s net provisions decreased by 48% to Rs. 1.2bn, aided by higher recoveries against Bad Loans. Active and Effective Risk Management kept the Bank’s Asset quality at Acceptable levels. The Bank’s gross ADR was reported at 62 percent, one of the highest amongst peers. The shareholders were further informed that at the year end, the Bank’s NPL ratio remained at 4.8 percent, and more importantly, the coverage ratio was reflected at 86 percent, both of which compare well with the best in the industry.

The Bank’s total assets at December 2016 were reported at Rs. 917 Billion as against Rs. 903 Billion last year. In line with the Bank’s strategy for mobilizing core and stable deposits and to reduce the overall cost of deposits, total Deposits remained at the level of Rs. 640 Billion, with overall CASA mix improving to 83 percent and Current Accounts increasing by 19 percent. The Bank’s lending activity continued to remain healthy with Gross Advances improving by 13 percent to Rs. 396 Billion in December 2016.

The Bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Atif Bajwa said, “The Bank’s performance in 2016 reflects yet another year of sound financial results amidst a continuously challenging business environment. We have strived to promote financial and digital inclusion in the country through various initiatives, and with a continued focus on improving productivity and bringing in efficiency; we remain committed to expand our impact further and to touch the lives of as many people as possible.”